May 26, 2024 LIVING IT NOW
1 John 2:4-6 “The one who says, ‘I have come to know Him,’ and does not keep His commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him: the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked.”
I have written several blogs dealing with this and other verses about keeping His commandments because He loves us. Today, let’s look at this verse from a different perspective. It sometimes seems that we are always chasing the rabbit, but never catching the creature! This is often true in all realms of life; whether it be in our world of work, maintaining our possessions, our hobbies, and even in our relationship with God. (There are not two categories-secular and spiritual; all we do is to be done as unto Him.) The good news is that the rabbit can be caught! We can come to a place that we are good with God; the striving can cease. It is not God’s plan for us to always feel as though we do not measure up in some realm of our lives; to feel that we need to do better. It is good to on occasion examine ourselves, but we should not get caught up in having to much introspection. We do not have to keep up with the Joneses; we can and should be ourselves. This does not imply that we are not to be growing in the faith; we are to be becoming more and more like Him. Here is the point: the love of God can be perfected in us! The love of God being perfected in us is the big game changer in every area of life. You might even say that His love being perfected in us fixes everything. It does not mean we will no longer face trials, but it does something in us that enables us to overcome the trial and not be defeated by it. The love of God being perfected in us is a super powerful force; a force that moves mountains; that conquers doubt and depression; that gives purpose in all we do; that turns our sadness into joy; and it is never depleted. In the darkness hour, His love raises us up and comforts us. When His love is perfected in us, our greatest joy is keeping His commandments; keeping His commandments is no longer rules we must keep. Now, the all important question: how is His love perfected in us? I don’t know! But I do know that when it is our greatest desire to know Him, when our heart is turned to Him, and as we read and meditate on His word, He will respond. We can not make His love perfected in us; it must be revealed to us by the Holy Spirit. The good news is that when His love is perfected in us, for the first time we can live in real peace; we can simply enjoy our relationship with our Father just as Adam and Eve did as they walked in the cool of the day with God before sin entered the picture. And, amazingly, His love being perfected in us enables us to ‘walk in the same manner as He walked.’ And that is amazing!
1 John 4:16 “So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.”
Blessings, Buddy
1 John 2:4-6 “The one who says, ‘I have come to know Him,’ and does not keep His commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him: the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked.”
I have written several blogs dealing with this and other verses about keeping His commandments because He loves us. Today, let’s look at this verse from a different perspective. It sometimes seems that we are always chasing the rabbit, but never catching the creature! This is often true in all realms of life; whether it be in our world of work, maintaining our possessions, our hobbies, and even in our relationship with God. (There are not two categories-secular and spiritual; all we do is to be done as unto Him.) The good news is that the rabbit can be caught! We can come to a place that we are good with God; the striving can cease. It is not God’s plan for us to always feel as though we do not measure up in some realm of our lives; to feel that we need to do better. It is good to on occasion examine ourselves, but we should not get caught up in having to much introspection. We do not have to keep up with the Joneses; we can and should be ourselves. This does not imply that we are not to be growing in the faith; we are to be becoming more and more like Him. Here is the point: the love of God can be perfected in us! The love of God being perfected in us is the big game changer in every area of life. You might even say that His love being perfected in us fixes everything. It does not mean we will no longer face trials, but it does something in us that enables us to overcome the trial and not be defeated by it. The love of God being perfected in us is a super powerful force; a force that moves mountains; that conquers doubt and depression; that gives purpose in all we do; that turns our sadness into joy; and it is never depleted. In the darkness hour, His love raises us up and comforts us. When His love is perfected in us, our greatest joy is keeping His commandments; keeping His commandments is no longer rules we must keep. Now, the all important question: how is His love perfected in us? I don’t know! But I do know that when it is our greatest desire to know Him, when our heart is turned to Him, and as we read and meditate on His word, He will respond. We can not make His love perfected in us; it must be revealed to us by the Holy Spirit. The good news is that when His love is perfected in us, for the first time we can live in real peace; we can simply enjoy our relationship with our Father just as Adam and Eve did as they walked in the cool of the day with God before sin entered the picture. And, amazingly, His love being perfected in us enables us to ‘walk in the same manner as He walked.’ And that is amazing!
1 John 4:16 “So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.”
Blessings, Buddy
RSS Feed